Collapsible seat assembly and a stroller with the same

ABSTRACT

A collapsible seat assembly is mounted on a frame of a stroller, and includes a joint member, a backrest support member, a leg support member and a locking mechanism. Each of a pivot portion of the backrest support member and a pivot portion of the leg support member is pivotably mounted on the joint member. The locking mechanism is disposed between the pivot portions to lock or unlock the backrest and leg support members. The locking mechanism is configured to be actuated to move from a locking position to an unlocking position by the operation of the frame of the stroller from an unfolded state to a folded state. A stroller having the collapsible seat assembly is also disclosed.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims priority of Chinese Patent Application No.201610230757.9, filed on Apr. 13, 2016.

FIELD

The disclosure relates to a stroller, and more particularly to astroller with a collapsible seat assembly.

BACKGROUND

A conventional foldable stroller generally has a removable seat assemblywhich is reversible in orientation relative to a stroller frame so as toallow a toddler to face forward or to face a caregiver who pushes theconventional foldable stroller from behind. When it is desired toreverse the orientation of the seat assembly, the seat assembly isremoved from the stroller frame, is turned around, and is then mountedback on the stroller frame. Since such seat assembly cannot be foldedtogether with the stroller frame, the seat assembly must be removed fromthe stroller frame prior to folding of the stroller frame for storage ortransport. Hence, the seat assembly must be stored as a separate piecefrom the stroller frame, which results in inconvenience in using thestroller.

SUMMARY

Therefore, an object of the disclosure is to provide a collapsible seatassembly and a stroller with the same that can alleviate at least one ofthe drawbacks of the prior art.

According to the disclosure, the collapsible seat assembly is mounted ona frame of a stroller which is operable between folded and unfoldedstates. The collapsible seat assembly includes a joint member, abackrest support member having a backrest pivot portion which ispivotably mounted on the joint member, a leg support member having a legpivot portion which is pivotably mounted on the joint member such thatthe collapsible seat assembly is operable between a folded position,where the backrest support member is close to the leg support member,and an unfolded position, where the backrest support member is remotefrom the leg support member, and a locking mechanism disposed betweenthe backrest pivot portion and the leg pivot portion. The lockingmechanism is operable between a locking position, where the backrestpivot portion is retained relative to the leg pivot portion so as tohold the collapsible seat assembly in the unfolded position, and anunlocking position, where the backrest pivot portion is turnablerelative to the leg pivot portion so as to permit movement of thecollapsible seat assembly to the unfolded position. The lockingmechanism is configured to be actuated to move from the locking positionto the unlocking position by the operation of the frame of the strollerfrom the unfolded state to the folded state.

According to the disclosure, the stroller includes a frame whichincludes a handle assembly, a front leg assembly, a rear leg assemblyand a fold joint assembly. The handle assembly has a handle pivotportion pivotably mounted on the fold joint assembly to be turned to thefolded state. The stroller further includes the collapsible seatassembly. The joint member is removably mounted on the fold jointassembly. The frame further includes a pressing member which is disposedto be slidable relative to the fold joint assembly and which has atleast one pressing portion projecting from the fold joint assembly anddisposed to be moved when the handle assembly is turned relative to thefold joint assembly. At least one pressed portion of the lockingmechanism projects from the joint member and engages the pressingportion to be pressed by the pressing portion so as to move the lockingmechanism to be disengaged from one of the backrest pivot portion andthe leg pivot portion in the unlocking position.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Other features and advantages of the disclosure will become apparent inthe following detailed description of the embodiment with reference tothe accompanying drawings, of which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating an embodiment of a strolleraccording to the disclosure in an unfolded state;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view illustrating an embodiment of a collapsibleseat assembly according to the disclosure;

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary perspective view illustrating the seat assemblyconnected to a frame of the stroller;

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary partly exploded perspective view of the seatassembly;

FIG. 5 is a fragmentary partly exploded perspective view of the seatassembly;

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary schematic view illustrating the seat assembly;

FIG. 7 is a fragmentary perspective view of the seat assembly;

FIG. 8 is a fragmentary partly exploded perspective view illustratingthe seat assembly and a fold joint assembly of the frame;

FIG. 9 is an exploded perspective view illustrating a joint member ofthe seat assembly;

FIG. 10 is a fragmentary perspective view illustrating the structure ofthe fold joint assembly;

FIG. 11 is a perspective view illustrating the stroller in anintermediate state; and

FIG. 12 is a perspective view illustrating the stroller in a foldedstate.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Referring to FIGS. 1 to 4 and FIG. 6, an embodiment of a stroller 100according to this disclosure includes a frame 1 and a collapsible seatassembly 2. The frame 1 includes a handle assembly 11, a front legassembly 12, a rear leg assembly 13 and a pair of fold joint assemblies14. The handle assembly 11 has a pair of handle pivot portions 111pivotably mounted on the fold joint assemblies 14, respectively, to beturned between an unfolded state of the frame 1, as shown in FIG. 1, anda folded state of the frame 1, as shown in FIG. 12. The collapsible seatassembly 2 includes a pair of joint members 21, a backrest supportmember 22, a leg support member 23, a pair of locking mechanisms 24 anda pair of angle adjusting mechanisms 25. The backrest support member 22has a pair of backrest pivot portions 221 which are pivotably mounted onthe joint members 21, respectively. The leg support member 23 has a pairof leg pivot portions 231 which are pivotably mounted on the jointmember 21, respectively. Thus, the collapsible seat assembly 2 isoperable between a folded position, where the backrest support member 22is close to the leg support member 23, and an unfolded position, wherethe backrest support member 22 is remote from the leg support member 23.Each of the locking mechanisms 24 is disposed between a respective oneof the backrest pivot portions 221 and a respective one of the leg pivotportions 231, and is operable between a locking position, where therespective backrest pivot portion 221 is retained relative to therespective leg pivot portion 231 so as to hold the collapsible seatassembly 2 in the unfolded position, and an unlocking position, wherethe respective backrest pivot portion 221 is turnable relative to therespective leg pivot portion 231 so as to permit movement of thecollapsible seat assembly 2 to the unfolded position. In the followingdescription, the joint member 21, the backrest pivot portion 221 of thebackrest support member 22, the leg pivot portion 231 of the leg supportmember 23, the locking mechanism 24 and the angle adjusting mechanism 25at one side of the collapsible seat assembly 2 are described in detailfor the sake of clarity.

Referring to FIGS. 4 and 5, each of the locking mechanisms 24 includes afirst locking member 241, a second locking member 242 and a firstbiasing member 243. Each of the backrest and leg pivot portions 221, 231has a circular profile to define a central axis, and each of the firstand second locking members 241, 242 is in the form of a ring. The firstlocking member 241 is disposed to be slidable relative to the jointmember 21 along the central axis. The second locking member 242 isdisposed to be slidable relative to the backrest pivot portion 221 alongthe central axis, and abuts against the first locking member 241.Alternatively, the second locking member 242 may be secured to the firstlocking member 241. The first locking member 241 is disposed toretainingly engage both the backrest pivot portion 221 and the leg pivotportion 231 in the locking position so as to lock the backrest and legsupport members 22, 23, and to be disengaged from the backrest pivotportion 221 in the unlocking position so as to unlock the backrest andleg support members 22, 23. Specifically, each of the backrest and legpivot portions 221, 231 has an engaging recess (221 a, 231 a). The firstlocking member 241 has at least one locking portion (241 a) at aperiphery thereof. The locking portion (241 a) is disposed to engageboth the engaging recesses (221 a, 231 a) in the locking position, andto be disengaged from the engaging recess (221 a) of the backrest pivotportion 221 and engage the engaging recess (231 a) of the leg pivotportion 231 in the unlocking position. The first biasing member 243,such as four compression springs, is disposed between the first lockingmember 241 and the leg pivot portion 231 to bias the locking portion(241 a) of the first locking member 241 to engage both the engagingrecesses (221 a, 231 a) so as to ensure the locking of the backrest andleg support members 22, 23.

With reference to FIGS. 4, 6 and 7, the second locking member 242 has aplurality of retaining grooves (242 a) (e.g., two retaining grooves inthis embodiment) at a periphery thereof to be angularly displaced fromeach other about the central axis. Each of the angle adjustingmechanisms 25 includes a retaining member 251, an operating member 252and a second biasing member 253. The retaining member 251 is disposed inthe backrest support member 22 to be movable relative to the backrestpivot portion 221, and to be engaged in a selected one of the retaininggrooves (242 a) so as to retain an angular position of the backrestsupport member 22 relative to the second locking member 242. The secondbiasing member 253 is a compression spring in this embodiment, and isdisposed to bias the retaining member 251 to be engaged in the selectedone of the retaining grooves (242 a). The operating member 252 is asteel wire in this embodiment, and has an end connected to the retainingmember 251, and an opposite end connected to an operated member 222 thatis disposed on a crossbar of the backrest support member 22 for beingmanually operated, as shown in FIG. 2. The second locking member 242 hasat least one guiding slot (242 b) elongated around the central axis. Thebackrest pivot portion 221 has at least one guided pin (221 b) which isdisposed in and slidable relative to the guiding slot (242 b) so as toguide an angular movement of the backrest support member 22 relative tothe second locking member 242. Each of the retaining grooves (242 a)extends to an inclined bottom surface such that the depth of theretaining groove (242 a) is gradually reduced from a side proximate tothe leg pivot portion 231 toward the joint member 21. Hence, when thesecond locking member 242 is actuated to move the first locking member241 toward the leg pivot portion 231, the retaining member 251 can bereadily disengaged from the retaining groove (242 a) so as to unlock thecollapsible seat assembly 2.

Referring to FIGS. 1, 8 and 9, the joint member 21 is removably mountedon the fold joint assembly 14 to mount the collapsible seat assembly 2on the frame 1 of the stroller 100. Specifically, the joint member 21has a socket 211 opened downwardly, and the fold joint assembly 14 has aplug 141 which is configured to be inserted into the socket 211 so as tobring the joint member 21 into a non-rotatable engagement with the foldjoint assembly 14. In addition, the fold joint assembly 14 has aretaining hole 142 formed above the plug 141, and the joint member 21further has a retaining pin 212 which is disposed to be inserted intothe retaining hole 142 when the joint member 21 is mounted on the foldjoint assembly 14 so as to retain the joint member 21 to the fold jointassembly 14. The retaining pin 212 is disposed on and slidable relativeto the joint member 21. A fourth biasing member 213 is disposed betweenthe retaining pin 212 and an inner wall of the joint member 21 to biasthe retaining pin 212 toward the retaining hole 142. The fourth biasingmember 213 is a compression spring in this embodiment. The retaining pin212 has an actuated surface (212 b). An operating button 214 is disposedon and slidable relative to the joint member 21, and abuts against theactuated surface (212 b) of the retaining pin 212 such that theoperating button 214 is manually operable to disengage the retaining pin212 from the retaining hole 142. By means of retaining the retaining pin212 in the retaining hole 142, the joint member 21 is retaininglymounted on the fold joint assembly 14 to prevent unintended removal ofthe joint member 21 from the fold joint assembly 14.

Referring to FIGS. 8 to 10, the handle assembly 11 is pivotably mountedon the fold joint assembly 14 through the handle pivot portion 111. Alocking unit (not shown) is disposed on the fold joint assembly 14 tolock and unlock the handle assembly 11 relative to the fold jointassembly 14. The fold joint assembly 14 is hollow. A pressing member 15is disposed within and slidable relative to the fold joint assembly 14.The pressing member 15 has at least one pressing portion 151 (e.g., twopressing portions in this embodiment) projecting from the fold jointassembly 14 toward the second locking member 242. The second lockingmember 242 has at least one pressed portion (242 c) (e.g., two pressedportions in this embodiment) which projects from the joint member 21 andwhich engages the pressing portion 151. The frame 1 further includes arotary member 16 and a third biasing member 17. The rotary member 16 issecured on and turnable with the handle pivot portion 111 of the handleassembly 11, and has a spirally extending cam surface 161. The pressingmember 15 has a cam portion 152 which abuts against the cam surface 161.Thus, a torque generated by turning of the rotary member 16 is convertedinto a pressing force to press the pressing member 15 along the centralaxis. Thus, when the handle assembly 11 is turned to the folded state,the rotary member 16 is turned and the pressing member 15 is moved alongthe central axis by turning of the cam surface 161 relative to the camportion 152 so as to bring the pressing portion 151 to project outwardlyof a through hole 143 in the fold joint assembly 14, such that thepressing portion 151 presses the pressed portion (242 c) of the secondlocking member 242. The sliding movement of the second locking member242 drives the first locking member 241 to slide so as to permit thefirst locking member 241 to be disengaged from the engaging recess (221a) of the backrest pivot portion 221, and to unlock the backrest supportmember 22 relative to the leg support member 23. The third biasingmember 17 is disposed between the pressing member 15 and the fold jointassembly 14 to bias the pressing member 15 away from the second lockingmember 242. The third biasing member 17 is a compression spring in thisembodiment.

Referring to FIGS. 1, 11 and 12, to fold the frame 1 of the stroller 100to the folded state, the locking unit is operated to unlock the handleassembly 11 to permit pivot movement of the handle assembly 11. Thehandle assembly 11 is then pivoted downwardly and the rotary member 16is turned with the handle assembly 11. Meanwhile, with reference toFIGS. 9 and 10, by turning of the cam surface 161 relative to the camportion 152, the pressing portion 151 of the pressing member 15 is movedto project outwardly of the fold joint assembly 14, as illustrated, topress the pressed portion (242 c) to thereby permit the second lockingmember 242 to move within the backrest pivot portion 221 of the backrestsupport member 22. Further, with reference to FIGS. 4 and 5, the secondlocking member 242 presses the first locking member 241 to permit thelocking portion (241 a) to be disengaged from the engaging recess (221a) of the backrest pivot portion 221 and to be completely engaged in theengaging recess (231 a) of the leg pivot portion 231. At the same time,with reference to FIGS. 4 and 6, due to movement of the second lockingmember 242 toward the leg pivot portion 231, the retaining member 251 isdisengaged from the retaining groove (242 a). Thus, an unlockingoperation of the backrest and leg support members 22, 23 is conducted.Subsequently, the backrest and leg support members 22, 23 are pivoteddownwardly and toward each other to collapse the seat assembly 2. Thefront leg assembly 12 is pivoted with the pivot movement of the handleassembly 11 to be close to the rear leg assembly 13 to fold the frame 1of the stroller 100.

Moreover, when it is desired to adjust an angular position of thecollapsible seat assembly 2 in the unfolded state of the stroller 1, acaregiver operates the operated member 222 to pull the retaining member251 out of the retaining groove (242 a). Then the seat assembly 2 isturned relative to the frame 2 about the central axis to permit theretaining member 251 to be engaged in another retaining groove (242 a)so as to lock the seat assembly 2 again.

As illustrated, since each of the backrest pivot portion 221 of thebackrest support member 22 and the leg pivot portion 231 of the legsupport member 23 is pivotably mounted on the joint member 21 to beturnable relative to the joint member 21 and to be locked to each otherby means of the locking mechanism 24, the collapsible seat assembly 2can be operated between the folded and unfolded positions, therebyrendering folding and unfolding thereof simple and convenient. Moreover,by virtue of the pressing member 15 and the rotary member 16 beingdisposed on the fold joint assembly 14, the pressing member 15 havingthe pressing portion 151 and the second locking member 242 having thepressed portion (242 c), the locking mechanism 24 is actuated to movefrom the locking position to the unlocking position by the operation ofthe frame 1 of the stroller 100 from the unfolded state to the foldedstate. In other words, when turning the handle assembly 11 to fold theframe 1 of the stroller 100, the collapsible seat assembly 2 can befolded to the folded position without the need to remove the collapsibleseat assembly 2 from the frame 1, thereby facilitating folding of thestroller 100.

While the disclosure has been described in connection with what isconsidered the exemplary embodiment, it is understood that thisdisclosure is not limited to the disclosed embodiment but is intended tocover various arrangements included within the spirit and scope of thebroadest interpretation so as to encompass all such modifications andequivalent arrangements.

1-9. (canceled)
 10. A stroller comprising a frame which is operablebetween folded and unfolded states and which includes a handle assembly,a front leg assembly, a rear leg assembly and a fold joint assembly,said handle assembly having a handle pivot portion pivotably mounted onsaid fold joint assembly to be turned to the folded state, said strollerfurther comprising a collapsible seat assembly which includes a jointmember; a backrest support member having a backrest pivot portion whichis pivotably mounted on said joint member; a leg support member having aleg pivot portion which is pivotably mounted on said joint member suchthat said collapsible seat assembly is operable between a foldedposition, where said backrest support member is proximate to said legsupport member, and an unfolded position, where said backrest supportmember is distal from said leg support member; and a locking mechanismdisposed between said backrest pivot portion and said leg pivot portion,and operable between a locking position, where said backrest pivotportion is retained relative to said leg pivot portion so as to holdsaid collapsible seat assembly in the unfolded position, and anunlocking position where said backrest pivot portion is turnablerelative to said leg pivot portion so as to permit movement of saidcollapsible seat assembly to the unfolded position, said lockingmechanism being actuated to move from the locking position to theunlocking position by the operation of said frame of said stroller fromthe unfolded state to the folded state, said locking mechanism includinga first locking member which is slidable relative to said joint memberand which is disposed to retainingly engage both said backrest pivotportion and said leg pivot portion in the locking position, and to bedisengaged from one of said backrest pivot portion and said leg pivotportion in the unlocking position, said locking mechanism furtherincluding a second locking member which is disposed to be slidablerelative to said backrest pivot portion, said joint member beingremovably mounted on said fold joint assembly, said frame furtherincluding a pressing member which is disposed to be slidable relative tosaid fold joint assembly and which has at least one pressing portionprojecting from said fold joint assembly and disposed to be moved whensaid handle assembly is turned relative to said fold joint assembly,said locking mechanism having at least one pressed portion whichprojects from said joint member and which engages said pressing portionto be pressed by said pressing portion so as to disengage said lockingmechanism from one of said backrest pivot portion and said leg pivotportion in the unlocking position.
 11. The stroller as claimed in claim10, wherein said frame further includes a rotary member which is securedon and turnable with said handle pivot portion and which has a camsurface, said pressing member having a cam portion which abuts againstsaid cam surface such that when said rotary member is turned with saidhandle assembly to the folded state, said pressing member is moved byturning of said cam surface relative to said cam portion to permit saidpressing portion to press said second locking member.
 12. The strolleras claimed in claim 11, wherein said frame further includes a thirdbiasing member which is disposed to bias said pressing member away fromsaid second locking member.
 13. The stroller as claimed in claim 10,wherein said joint member has a socket, said fold joint assembly havinga plug which is configured to be inserted into said socket so as tobring said joint member into a non-rotatable engagement with said foldjoint assembly.
 14. The stroller as claimed in claim 10, wherein saidfold joint assembly has a retaining hole, said joint member having aretaining pin which is disposed to be inserted into said retaining holewhen said joint member is mounted on said fold joint assembly so as toretain said joint member to said fold joint assembly.
 15. The strolleras claimed in claim 14, wherein said retaining pin is disposed to beslidable relative to said joint member, said frame further including afourth biasing member which is disposed to bias said retaining pintoward said retaining hole.
 16. The stroller as claimed in claim 15,wherein said retaining pin has an actuated surface, said frame furtherincluding an operating button which is slidably disposed on said jointmember and which abuts against said actuated surface such that saidoperating button is operated to disengage said retaining pin from saidretaining hole.